


Hidden Scars

by VisionaryGalaxy



Series: A Thousand Futures of Me and You [56]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Boys In Love, Don't copy to another site, Drabble, Fluff, Insecure Stephen Strange, M/M, Morning Kisses, Scars, Short & Sweet, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-03
Updated: 2019-02-03
Packaged: 2019-10-21 14:48:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,001
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17644832
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VisionaryGalaxy/pseuds/VisionaryGalaxy
Summary: He was completely and undeniably human. He was contrary and filled and with faults, and every single one Tony found made him fall further in love.But this one. This one needed fixing.





	Hidden Scars

**Author's Note:**

> Something short and sweet that inspired another one coming soon ;)

   Tony woke suddenly, eyes flying open, his body tense and still, as the echoes of pain in his chest and screaming in his head faded away. His breathing stuttered out even as he locked his eyes on the window, intent on distraction.

   It didn’t take long. The nightmare was a familiar one, and while it startled him awake, it wouldn’t stay with him for longer then an hour or two. His breathing evened out, then slowly, like he had practiced, he began at his toes and relaxed each and every muscle. A long and tedious exercise, but worth it.

   He inhaled deeply and took stock of his position. He allowed his eyes to roam the familiar bedroom of the Sanctuary, finding it secure and serene in the dim light, just beginning to highlight the curtain, he focused on the heat along his back.

   Carefully, with the practice ease of a daily practice, Tony turned in his spot until his back was no longer facing his lover. He stared unabashedly at the breathtaking sight before him, feeling himself relax further and his heart finally reach that steady rhythm.

   Stephen appeared to still be fast asleep, though certainly not for long. He was an even lighter sleeper then Tony, which was saying something and soon enough his body would sense not only Tony’s shifting but the energy of the Sanctum, which he claimed alerted him to his wakefulness. He planned to take full advantage before then.

   His face was tilted toward Tony’s pillow, not eight inches from where Tony lay, his warm breath ghosting lightly across him. His expression, while still, seemed content, the slightest upturn in his lips that never failed to make Tony’s heart stutter. Although the room was being steadily filled with the dim warm glow of a rising sun, Stephen remained shadowed, creating a beautifully ethereal glow. He had the urge to run his fingers through his disheveled hair, sticking up in all sorts of ways. There would be time for that later though, the man was practically a cat with how much he enjoyed being petted.

   Instead, Tony reached across, seeing the twitching of Stephen’s eyes, and rested his hand against Stephen’s chest, directly over his heart. His lover didn’t move, though he knew he was instantly awake, Tony loved when he was indulgent like this.

   Stephen was clad only in boxers, hidden beneath the thick comforter, but his chest was laid bare to Tony’s thirsty eyes. Slowly, he began to stroke the skin there, feeling the heat of his body, burning into his fingertips as he did so. They rarely had as much time as this, they might wake up together most mornings, but it was always in a rush of one sort or another. This was a treat and one he was going to appreciate.

   He began to slide his fingers to the center of Stephen’s chest, moving through the dusting of chest hair to stroke the scar there, a souvenir from his crash. He glanced at Stephen as he did so, noted the way his lip twitched this time and Tony grinned. He moved lower, palm going flat against his stomach, where he could feel every breath in and out, pressed down lightly before shifting further onto his abdomen. He simply held his hand there, watched with barely concealed glee as Stephen’s lips fell open just enough to release a huff of air.

   Seeing the flat expanse of Stephen’s chest, scarred and sprinkled with innumerable mementos was strangely tempting. In some ways this was completely new, and Tony sensed, as he ran his thumb along a thin crooked scar on his hip, that he was treading some invisible line.

   Stephen hated his scars, Tony knew that intimately. The first time they had sex, Stephen had quickly taken control the moment Tony found interest in exploring them, pinning his hands and looking down at him with that enticing smirk that wasn’t quite enough to hide the shakiness in his eyes. He wasn’t one to push, at least not right away, and dutifully avoided the damaged skin.

   Shortly after that first time, Tony had attempted to broach the subject on more equal ground, casually inquiring while Stephen changed, about one scar or another. His answers were always short and dismissive, clearly looking to avoid story time or further examination.

   Tony wished he could say he understood, that it didn’t leave him feeling confused and no little bit bitter when he showed his own and was still denied this part of the man. The thing was, Tony was selfish and needy, and far too used to getting everything he wanted. Whether that be through hard-work, bribery, or less kind methods. And what he wanted was Stephen, every single part of him he could get his hands on, his mind, his body, his voice, his deepest darkest secrets and pains.

   Tony was quickly discovering the most significant of which was this man’s inexplicable deep-seated insecurity. It was something that Tony wasn’t sure he could ever truly understand, insecurity was something he had violently removed from himself, at least from the physical perspective, relationships were a whole other thing best not discussed. But looking at Stephen now relaxed and practically pliant in front of him, he couldn’t imagine how the man could doubt himself.

   Stephen was beautiful.

   His skin was pale, it was marked with dozens of scars, his goatee was two cm off even, his chest hair was no thicker then a light dusting, his face was often drawn and haggard from exhaustion, and his hair was forever breaking free of his carefully crafted style.

   He had a temper that could make a room full of alpha male superheroes cower in the space of a minute. He was condescending as all hell if you had so much as a sniffle let alone a concussion or broken bone. Rude and abrupt was his first instinct in any conversation. He was often forgetful of even the smallest of things like eating and drinking, not to mention basic chores and dates. He sometimes grew harsh and angry to the point of tears and hating the world he himself had saved on days when the shaking in his hands was so bad, he couldn’t even hold his tea or a book steady.

   But.

   His pale skin highlighted the barrage of lessons and sacrifices this man had made day in and day out to protect those he loves and those he doesn’t even know. His drawn and exhausted face, while being Tony’s greatest enemy, was the pure evidence to even the most untrained eye that everything he did was for others, that every moment he should have been sleeping he was giving every piece of himself to the planet they walked.

   His temper while stunning and sometimes down right terrifying, was also magnificent. He raged with a passion in his eyes speaking of experience and zero tolerance for failure, not just from himself, but everyone around him. His true nature as a caretaker was hidden behind harsh words and rolled eyes as he put casts and did emergency surgery in the middle of a battlefield on his teammates. His good heart in all things, his acceptance of suffering revealed itself when after smashing cups and throwing books, he would take a deep breath, wipe his tears, and silently pick up his mess.

   He was completely and undeniably human. He was contrary and filled and with faults and every single one Tony found made him fall further in love.

   But this one. This one needed fixing.

   Tony was well-aware he wasn’t equipped to snap his fingers and erase the man’s insecurity though he wished he could. What he did have, however, was this. Lifting himself slightly on one arm, Tony leaned over Stephen, who was still feigning sleep, and keeping his eyes on his face, pressed a kiss gently to a two-inch line, red, angry and bubbling with scar tissue. It was just to the left of his sternum, barely noticeable next to the larger central scar.

   Stephen went completely still beneath him, as if time itself had frozen as his breathing halted and he went rigid. There was the slightest furrowing of brows, his hand twitched where it lay as his side, but other then that he said nothing.

   Cautiously, Tony went up again, to a smaller injury just a few cm away from his nipple, lightly pressing his lips there too. When there was no immediate reaction, Tony continued from scar to scar, never giving too much attention to any one, even though some made his heart ache.

   All the while Stephen took it passively, his breathing eventually evening out and if Tony didn’t know any better, he would think the man had slipped back into sleep. There was something euphoric and exciting and powerful about being allowed this, about Stephen laying himself bare to Tony, all the while knowing how vulnerable he felt.

   Tears pricked his eyes as the trust in the simple action of not acting. He wasn’t pushing Tony away or distracting him with, he was letting it happen and for the first time in the months they had been together, Tony felt like he was actually _with_ Stephen.

   So, he continued, inhaling the familiar scent of sweat and inherent sweetness that was all Stephen. It went on for nearly ten minutes, as he carefully kissed each and every scar he could find, even the tiny little circles that were certainly chickenpox. It was only when he moved to his shoulder, pressing his kiss a little harder on the round circle of scar tissue that he recalled from a fight several weeks back, that he noticed Stephen shifting.

   He lowered to his bicep, saw Stephen’s mouth twitch down into a frown, went an inch lower, saw his eyes squeeze more tightly closed. He caressed Stephen’s forearm while kissing his elbow, only for Stephen’s breathing to freeze again.

   It didn’t take a genius to figure out why, and although Tony hated the fact with a passion, he knew better then to be greedy. Stephen’s hands were on an entirely other level, one that would take much longer to break down and wheedle his way into. He had every intention of one day being able to hold Stephen’s hand whenever he wanted, to kiss, and lick, and caress every finger, scar and line, to massage the sore muscles and pamper them on bad days. But not today.

   Stephen had already given him so much and Tony would be damned if he made the man regret it. So, with a quiet inhale he leaned back up and pressed a final kiss to his heart, felt his entire being relax beneath him again as he laid his head there.

   “Good morning beautiful,” Tony murmured.

   Stephen took a deep shaky breath, then slowly opened his eyes, blinking rapidly in the light for a moment as he stared down at Tony. There was something in his eyes that took Tony’s breath away and set his heart beating at a rapid pace. The adoration and shaky expression of worship in them, sent a wave of heat through Tony, along with a dose of emotion, pricking his eyes and making his throat burn.

   Stephen offered a weak smile, lifted the hand that was pressed between them, and ran it through what was certainly Tony’s rat nest of hair, “I love you,” Stephen whispered.

   Tony grinned, reached up and pressed a hard kiss to the man’s lips, heard his startled little laugh and revelled in it. They wouldn’t talk about, Tony knew that much, and he didn’t mind. He also knew however, that next time he woke before him, he would repeat the process, at least until he stopped being startled by the attention, until he could convince the man, if not in words, then in actions, that he was beautiful. It had nothing to do with scars and pale skin, and everything to do with what they represented.

**Author's Note:**

> Thoughts and opinions always appreciated!


End file.
